Current Affairs & General Knowledge Test - 5

Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), a central armed police force, secures the Nepal and Bhutan borders. The border forces of India and Nepal will conduct regular joint patrolling along the border to control trans-border crimes, smuggling of arms, human trafficking and other areas of concern.

The fifth annual coordination meeting between SSB and Armed Police Force, Nepal concluded recently. The help desk established by APF and the SSB at transit points of the border would continue to facilitate the movement of citizens.

The doctrine of harmonious construction was propounded by Supreme Court in Kerala Education Bill (1957) Case.

In Kerala Education Bill (1957), the Supreme Court said that in case of a conflict between Fundamental Right and Directive Principles, the principle of harmonious construction should be applied. The court observed that: “though the directive principles can not override the fundamental rights, nevertheless, in determining the scope and ambit of fundamental rights the court could not entirely ignore the directive principle but should adopt the principle of harmonious construction and should attempt to give effect to both as much as possible“.

Timber vegetation is generally not found in Tundra region.

• Timber is a type of wood that has been processed into beams and planks.
• It is also known as 'lumber' in the US and Canada.
• Any wood capable of yielding a minimum dimensional size can be termed timber or lumber. It is a stage in the process of wood production.
• Timbers are used for structural purposes. Those woods which are adapted for building purposes are timbers. Finished timber is supplied in standard sizes for the industry.
• Timber is used for building houses and making furniture.
• The Timber vegetation is generally found in the Subtropical, Temperate, and Alpine regions. 
• The tundra is a treeless polar desert found in the high latitudes in the polar regions, primarily in Alaska, Canada, Russia, Greenland, Iceland, and Scandinavia, as well as sub-Antarctic islands. The region's long, dry winters feature months of total darkness and extremely frigid temperatures.

Contempt of court, as a concept that seeks to protect judicial institutions from motivated attacks and unwarranted criticism, and as a legal mechanism to punish those who lower its authority.

There are two types of Contempt of court.

• Civil contempt of court is the willful disobedience of a court order or judgment or willful breach of an undertaking given to a court. So, Statement 1 is not correct.
• Criminal contempt of court is written or spoken words or any act that scandalizes the court or lowers its authority or prejudices or interferes with the due course of a judicial proceeding or interferes/obstructs the administration of justice. So, Statement 2 is not correct.

Russia has proposed a draft agreement to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) on measures to ensure the security of both sides(Russia and NATO).

It suggested that Russia and NATO reaffirm that they do not consider each other as adversaries. Russia asked NATO to stop further enlargement, the accession of Ukraine, and to cease any military activity in Ukraine and other countries in Eastern Europe, the South Caucasus and Central Asia.

The Vaishnav Bhakti saints in South India were called Alvars.

Sagun Bhakti refers to devotion and prayer to god having some form and with attributes whereas Nirguna Bhakti refers to devotion and prayer to formlessness god without any attributes.

The Nayanars and Alvars were the Tamil poet-saints who played a key role in propagating the Bhakti Movement in Southern India.

Nayanars were the group of saints devoted to Lord Shiva while Alvars were the group of saints devoted to Lord Vishnu, Vaishnav Bhakti.

The features of parliamentary government in India:

Nominal and Real Executives - 

• The President is the nominal executive (de jure executive or titular executive) while the Prime Minister is the real executive (de facto executive).
• Thus, the President is head of the State, while the Prime Minister is head of the government. So, Statement 1 is not correct.

Majority Party Rule - 

• The political party which secures majority seats in the Lok Sabha forms the government.

Collective Responsibility

• This is the bedrock principle of parliamentary government.
• The ministers are collectively responsible to the Parliament in general and to the Lok Sabha in particular (Article 75).
• They act as a team, and swim and sink together.
• The principle of collective responsibility implies that the Lok Sabha can remove the ministry (i.e., the council of ministers headed by the prime minister) from office by passing a vote of no confidence.

Political Homogeneity

• Usually, members of the council of ministers belong to the same political party, and hence they share the same political ideology.
• In the case of a coalition government, the ministers are bound by consensus.

Double Membership

• The ministers are members of both the legislature and the executive.
• This means that a person cannot be a minister without being a member of Parliament.
• The Constitution stipulates that a minister who is not a member of the Parliament for a period of six consecutive months ceases to be a minister.

The Leadership of the Prime Minister

• The Prime Minister plays a leadership role in this system of government.
• S/He is the leader of the council of ministers, the leader of the Parliament, and the leader of the party in power.

Dissolution of the Lower House

• The lower house of the Parliament (Lok Sabha) can be dissolved by the President on the recommendation of the Prime Minister.
• In other words, the prime minister can advise the President to dissolve the Lok Sabha before the expiry of its term and hold fresh elections.
• This means that the executive enjoys the right to get the legislature dissolved in a parliamentary system.

Secrecy

• The ministers operate on the principle of secrecy of procedure and cannot divulge information about their proceedings, policies, and decisions.
• They take the oath of secrecy before entering their office.
• The oath of secrecy to the ministers is administered by the President.

Influenza is caused by a Virus.

Influenza, commonly known as "the flu", is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue.

There are four types of influenza virus, termed influenza viruses A, B, C, and D. Aquatic birds are the primary source of Influenza A virus (IAV), which is also widespread in various mammals, including humans and pigs. Influenza B virus (IBV) and Influenza C virus (ICV) primarily infect humans, and Influenza D virus (IDV) is found in cattle and pigs.

Baseball is a bat-and-ball game played between two opposing teams, of nine players each, that take turns batting and fielding.

Former Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe was on 23 Jan 2022 conferred with the Netaji Award 2022 by the Netaji Research Bureau.

• Consul general of Japan in Kolkata, Nakamura Yutaka, received the honour on behalf of Abe.
• Shinzo Abe served as the PM of Japan from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012- 2020.
• He is the longest-serving PM in the history of Japan.